St Leonard’s Church, Beeford

This project won the King of Prussia’s Gold Medal Award, presented by the Incorporated Church Building Society and The Historic Churches Preservation Trust. The medal is awarded annually to the Architect (or Chartered Surveyor) of that scheme of church repair, which is judged to have most successfully overcome the greatest aesthetic or technical challenge.
The building is basically 14C with 19C alterations and additions and is built of a variety of materials including sandstone, limestone, cobble and brickwork. The tower is built of local calcareous sandstone with tracery and mouldings in a softer stone, all very susceptible to erosion and decay. It is crowned by a carved and pierced parapet with eight pinnacles, very unusual in the East Riding.
Despite many repairs over the centuries, by 1995 the stonework was very eroded and in December of that year most of what remained was found to be unsafe and was removed. In 1997 substantial grant aid was agreed by English Heritage for reinstatement of the parapet together with other general roof and wall repairs. Complete replacement of all stones in the parapet was initially assumed and after surveys only one piece was found to be re-usable and about half the pinnacle sections were retained. Cracks in the top of the tower wall were stitched and additional support introduced by bracketing to the timber roof structure and additionally reinforced with steel ties. Leadwork on the roof was completely renewed and a lead apron inserted below the parapet to protect carved mouldings and bosses. Stone replacement on the tower walls was kept to a minimum though close examination from scaffolding revealed more detached faces (a characteristic of calcareous sandstone).On the west face the figure of St Leonard was carefully cleaned and given lime shelter coating. The canopy above the niche was completely rotten and a replacement copied from a canopy on North Frodingham church.
Work on site lasted eighteen months and the project was completed on budget.

Client: The Vicar & PCC of St Leonard’s Church, Beeford
Contractor: Burrows Davies Ltd